The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1887-01-27
JUBILEE OF SOULS.
REV. DR.. TALMAGE'S SERMON AT
THE TABERNACLE.

THE TABERNACLE.
A Memorable Day in the Church's His
tory-Three Hundred and Eight New
Members observation-disclosures the Souls
Only shelter.
BROOKLYN, Jan. 23.-The Rev. T. De Witt
TalGage's sermon to-day was preached at
thcreception of 30S new members, making the
communicant membership Of tho Brooklyn
tabernacle 1860 1t was u day memorable in
the history OF this church. The reverend
doctors text was Isaiah, TX, s: "lVho are
these that fly as a cloud, and as tho doves to
their windows| He preached as follows:
When God would set fast beautiful
thought He plants it in tree; when He
would put it ailoat He fashions it into fish;
wien tlo would have it glide into the air He
llob.s Is into IA bird. There is to ii any of
rs complete fascination in the structure
and habits of birds The blackbird floating
ike fake of darkness through the sunlight:
the meadow lark with head of fawn and
throat of velvet and breast of gold; the red
f,raingo flying over the southern swarnps like
2rl,s from the Jorge of the setting sun; the
iei"5n white and black, morning and night
-tau ies in It's wings They seem Lot moro of
cartn than heaven ever vacilating between
tie two No wonder that Audubon, with his
gun, tramped through ali tine American
forests i'll search of new specimens Geolo-
gists have spent years in finding the track of a
hiIda claw in the new red sandstone. There
i5 enough of Gods architecture in q snipe's
iili OF grouse's foot to confound all the uni
vefsitics,
Musicians have with cefs and bars tried to
cntch the sound of the nightingale and the
robin. Among the first things that a child
notices is n swallow at the caves, and grand
father goes out with handful of crumbs to
feed the sn0wbrds. The Bible is full of ornith-
illogical illusions. The birds of the Bible
are not dead and stuffed, like those of the
museum, but living birds, with futtering
wings and piumage. "Behold the fowls of the
air, says Christ. Though thou exalt thyself as
the eagle and though thou set thy nest among
the stars thence will bring thee down."
cxclaims Obadiah. '3avest thou the goodly
wings to the peacocil!" says Job. David de-
seribes his desolation by saying: Il am like
pelican of the wilderness; L am like an owl
of the desert; l watch, and am as a sparrow
upon the housetop." "Yea, the stork in the
Heaven knoweth her appointed time; and the
turtle and the crane and the swallow observe
the time of their coming; but my people
know not the Judgment of the Lordn so says
jeremiah And in the text Isaiah looks
ahead and sees the gathering of many people
unto Christ and the church, and it makes him
think of flock Of pigeons alighting ON their
coop, and all at once trying to get in at the
window Of the coop, and he cries OUT ''Who
are these that fly as a cloud and as the doves
to their windowS?o
This is one of the memorable days of the
Brooklyn Tabernacle On other Sundays we
drop the net; to-day we haul it in On other
days we send out the invitations for kings
party; to-day we sit at the banquet On
other days fight the battle; now we claim
victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Ye
who have toiled and contributed and prayed
for the success of this institution, take unto
your souls the grand satisfaction of this hour
To you, o, men and women, is fulfilled the
promise: "'rhey that SOW in tears shall reap
in joy" Wake up, o, Church Of Go1l and
bring garlands and music and let us celebrate
our harvest home"
Oh, this mercy of God. I am told it is an
ocean. Then place on it four swift sailing
crafts, with compass and charts and choice
rigging and skillful navigators, and L tell
them TO launch away and discover for me the
extent of this ocean. That craft puts out in
one direction and sails to the north; this to
the south; this to the east; this to the west
They crowd on all their canvas and sail TO-
600 years, and one day come up the harbor of
heaven, and l shout to them from the beach:
'Have you found the shore?n And they
answer: mo shore to Gods rnercyq Swift
angels, dispatched from the throne, attempt
to go across it. For /, ,O00, 600 years they fly
and fly, but then come back and fold their
wings at the foot of the throne and cry:
''Nc shorel No shore to Gods mercyr'
Mercy Mercy! l sing it. l preach it.
pray it. Here | find man bound hand and
foot to the devil, but with one stroke of the
hammer of Gods truth the chains fall off and
he is free forever. Mercy Mercyl Mercy!
There is no depth it cannot fathom; there is
no height it cannot scale; there is no infinity
it cannot compass.
When persons apply for membership into
any society, the question is asked: "Who are
they, and where do they come fromP and as
this multitude Of people to-day present them
selves for membership, it is right that we
should ask: "Who are these that come as
doves TO their w:ndowsp They are captives
whose chains have been broken; they ar,
soldiers, who have enlisted for thirty years
war; they are heirs of heaven.
They come as doves to the windows, first
because they fly low The eagle darts up a!
birds that seem to dwell under the caves o.
Heaven; you sec them as little specks agains
the sky so far off that you cannot guess tht
style of their plunage or the shape Of thei
bodies. They float so far away that if the
hunters gun be discharged at them they dt
not change their course. Not so with tn,
doves or pigeons, they never take any higi
excursions. They fly around your roof anc
ulight on the fence and seem to dislike grea
attitudes. so these souls who come to Chris
and to his church to-day fly low. They asl
no great things; they seek an humble plac
at the feet of Christ. They are not ASHAMED
to be called beggars for mercy, they are viii
ing to get down on their knees, and to craw
under tho table, and to pick up the crumbs 0
gospel provision. There were days whel
they were proud and punctilious and inexora
bic and pulled up; but not now. The highes
throne on earth could not tempt Mary ava.
from Jesus feet. Stoop, o pardoned soul, i
thou wouldst enter heaven. A high look an
n proud heart God hates. Fly low. 1t is
mercy that thou canst fly at all Remembe
all the years of thy sin; thy days of youthful
wandering; thy days of manhood transgres
sions; thy sins-dark, brooding, dreadful
sins-against thy soul against thy Bible
against thy God
In ore of the benevolent institutions Q
Europe where the destitute are provided fol
the new comers have their photographs take
while iE rags before they are washed, so tina
they may always have in the picture r'
minder of the degradation from which the
We're lifted; so, in this book, God keeps befor
thee picture of thy former destitution an
raggedness of soul. Fly low.
1t is ea offended God before whom tho
-comest. Thou deservest His wrath, II
scattered the 165, 900 of Sennacherib's host
n night. He abhors sin. He will judge th
nations. Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord Go
Almighty. Fly low.
A thousand years ago an emperor plante
n rose bush from which roses are plucke
to-day. At the foot of the cross nearly min